Astra Film Festival comes to Moldova for the first time

The organizers of Astra Film Chisinau propose to the audience two main themes: "Roads that bring us closer" and "Destinies & communities"

Astra Film Festival, the most important documentary film festival in Romania, brings to Chișinău, for the first time, a selection of the most appreciated films from this year's edition of the festival. The Astra Film Chisinau programme includes a screening of the event film "Transalpina - The Road of Kings" by Dumitru Budrala, as well as a concert "Floare de Maidan" by the Subcarpathian Cultural Centre. The event also has an educational component: teenagers will have the opportunity to watch films directly from the Astra Film Junior selection and will be able to participate in film literacy workshops. Funded by the Romanian Government's Department for Relations with the Republic of Moldova and the Romanian Cultural Institute, through its representative office in Chisinau, Astra Film Chisinau will take place on 11-13 November 2022 at the National Art Museum of Moldova and the B.P. Hasdeu Municipal Library. Admission is free, prior to reservation.

"It is with great excitement that we come to Chisinau for a meeting that we have been waiting for a long time, with the idea of discovering together fascinating perspectives on the world we live in. Because documentary film is about real life and concerns each of us in the most direct way possible", said Dumitru Budrala, founding director of Astra Film Festival.

"Astra Film Festival is a Romanian brand, a cultural project that has been validating cinematic creativity in Romania and abroad for 29 years. This is why it is so important for DRRM to be involved in exposing this Romanian value across the Prut. I hope that this first edition of Astra Film in Chisinau will be the cornerstone of a cinematographic tradition within the excellent relations between Romania and the Republic of Moldova", says Adrian Dupu, State Secretary of the Department for Relations with the Republic of Moldova.

"We are happy to continue the ICR - Astra Film partnership, opening this year's Astra Film Festival to the audience in Chisinau. I congratulate the organisers and encourage them to develop local partnerships so that Astra Film Chișinău can continue", said Liviu Jicman, President of the Romanian Cultural Institute.

Main themes of Astra Film Chisinau

Astra Film Chisinau presents a selection of valuable films, screened for the first time in the Republic of Moldova, that tell real stories about places and communities and invite the audience to reflect on profound themes: "Roads that bring us closer" and "Destinies & communities". The screenings will take place in the Great Hall of the Art Museum of the Republic of Moldova.

ROADS THAT BRING US CLOSER. The films grouped under the theme "Roads that bring us together" show how, over time, roads have played a decisive role in the connection and evolution of people and communities.

Friday 11 November (18:00) - The event film "Transalpina - The Road of Kings" (directed by Dumitru Budrala, Romania - 2016) tells the story of a breathtakingly beautiful road-symbol that throughout history has brought people together even in adverse conditions. Millennia old, the Transalpina is more than just a spectacular road. The stories hidden in the rivers, jays, mountain ridges, valleys and caves go beyond historical facts and dates, evoking the very spirit of the place. "A fabulous and necessary film, like the hearth for bread and our ancestors for their birth", said Ambassador Emil Hurezeanu after seeing "Transalpina". At the end of the screening, viewers will be able to engage in a dialogue with director Dumitru Budrala, Founding Director of Astra Film Festival.

Sunday, 13 November (17:00) - "The People of the Road: Terra Banatica" by Mircea Gherase (Romania - 2021) tells the story of Via Transilvanica, the road that crosses a diversity of ethnic, cultural, historical and geographical stages, a road about communities, identities and rediscovery. Those who have travelled the Via Transilvanica say it is a journey at pace, linked to history and initiation, an experience that offers revelations, healing and remarkable landscapes.

On Sunday, 13 November (18:30), the documentary "Waves on land" (directed by Raluca David, Romania - 2021) will be screened, a film about a different kind of journey: the life of Lucian, who divides his time between Ecuador, Portugal and visits to the Republic of Moldova, between his problems and those of those around him, between phone calls, roads, family, city, waves and his dream of representing his country at the Olympic Games. The documentary received a Special Mention at AFF 2022 (Romania Section). The screening will be followed by a dialogue between director Raluca David and the audience.

DESTINIES & COMMUNITIES. The documentaries included in this theme delve into the intimacy of the individual and build bridges of connection and understanding between cultures.

Saturday 12 November (17:00) - "Flying Sheep" (Germany, Romania - 2022), Alexandra Gulea's film, a poetic immersion into the memory of the Aromanians, a special ethnic group, roaming through the history of Europe and spread throughout the Balkan Peninsula, received a Special Mention at AFF2022 "for a bold cinematic exploration and excellent visual approach, an undeniably interesting work".

Saturday, 12 November (18:00) - The documentary "Eagles of Taga" (Romania, Slovakia - 2022), by Adina Popescu and Iulian Manuel Ghervas, paints a savory portrait of the man-institution: the coach of the Taga football team. Adina Popescu and Iulian Manuel Ghervas received the Best Director Award at AFF 2022 in the Romania section for this film, which evokes the realities of everyday life in the Transylvanian Plain with a fine sense of humor.

Saturday 12 November (19:30) - The film "The Chalice. Of Sons and Daughters" by Cătălina Tesăr and Dana Bunescu (Romania - 2022), awarded at AFF 2022 with the Best Film Award of the Romania Section, exposes, for the first time in cinema, the interesting world of a traditional Roma community in Transylvania, the world of the cortorari, which it shows, from the inside, exploring ancient customs at the heart of which lies, symbolically, a golden chalice handed down from generation to generation.

De la Astra Film Junior la liceenii din Chișinău

Pentru liceenii din Chișinău, și nu numai, organizatorii aduc filme care au făcut parte din cea mai recentă ediție Astra Film Junior - cel mai complex program de educație prin cinema documentar din România. Proiecțiile vor avea loc la Biblioteca Municipală B. P. Hașdeu și vor fi urmate de ateliere de film literacy susținute de regizoarea Lidia Ilie.

Sâmbătă, 12 noiembrie (12:00) - Filmul documentar de sâmbătă, „Aurora”, de Benjamin Langeland, Stian Servoss (Norvegia - 2019) pune spectatorul în fața unor întrebări importante: La ce anume ai renunța pentru a-ți urma visul? Care este costul celebrității? Ce rol are familia în susținerea ta? Sunt întrebări care pleacă de la povestea reală a Aurorei, o tânără din Norvegia care își începe cariera artistică la 16 ani, în orașul său natal, iar acest lucru o determină să renunțe la școală pentru a putea pleca în turnee.

Duminică, 13 noiembrie (12:00) - „iHuman”, de Tonje Hessen Schei (Norvegia - 2019), este un film care explorează lumea misterioasă a inteligenței artificiale plecând de la afirmația că Inteligența Artificială este „fie cel mai bun, fie cel mai rău lucru care i se poate întâmpla omenirii”. Filmul arată cum cercetătorii și oamenii de știință care studiază impactul pe care evoluția rapidă și impresionantă a acestei tehnologii îl va avea asupra noastră în viitor, dar și ce înseamnă, de fapt, inteligența artificială acum.

Despre Astra Film Festival

Astra Film Festival Sibiu, lansat în 1993 ca proiect inovator, este unul dintre cele mai importante festivaluri de film de non-ficțiune din Europa, inclus de European Film Academy pe lista festivalurilor care au dreptul de a face nominalizări directe pentru European Film Awards.

Astra Film Chișinău este un program organizat de Astra Film, CNM Astra, Departamentul pentru Relația cu Republica Moldova și de Institutul Cultural Român, prin reprezentanța sa de la Chișinău.

Parteneri instituționali: Ministerul Culturii din Republica Moldova, Institutul Cultural Român, prin reprezentanța sa de la Chișinău.

Parteneri: Muzeul Național de Artă al Moldovei, Biblioteca Municipală B. P. Hașdeu, Cronograf, CNC Chișinău, Centrul Cultural Subcarpați, Cărturești, Hotel Bristol

Parteneri media: TVR Moldova, Moldova 1, Radio Moldova, Radio Chișinău, Axial TV, Deschide.md, Ziarul Național, Nordnews, Realitatea.md, Viața Satelor

Partener comunicare: PiArt Vision